"get off of"

[CheekyMum]

Hi there,

I have heard so many people use "off of" in a sentence, as in - "get off of me" or "I can't take my eyes off of you" and I think it sounds wrong.

I have always believed that this is incorrect and you just use "off" - get off me...

Can someone tell me whether or not it is actually correct to say off of or not.

Thanks...Cheeky! :-D

 

[riverkid]

Hi there,

I have heard so many people use "off of" in a sentence, as in - "get off of me" or "I can't take my eyes off of you" and I think it sounds wrong.

I have always believed that this is incorrect and you just use "off" - get off me...

Can someone tell me whether or not it is actually correct to say off of or not.

Thanks...Cheeky! :-D

Yes, it's correct, CM. It simply adds a bit more emphasis.

 

[Tdol]

It's more redundant than anything else to me. ;-)

 

[Shakespeare's brother]

Put simply, 'off of' is not good English - even when used for over-emphasis!

 

[riverkid]

Language science disagrees with Shakespeare's brother.

How old are you, SB? Are there any other siblings alive? ;-)

 

[Shakespeare's brother]

Riverkid, please please please explain Language Science. It is a most unusual tag for a mode of communication that is not exact...as you have in fact testified to!

But seriously...'off of'? Is it popular in Canada? Because it grates on me as I'm sure it does for my younger brother too.

 

[riverkid]

Riverkid, please please please explain Language Science.

Hello, S'sB.

Language science, rightfully, acknowledges that there are forms, often disparaged, that have a place in language. Things common to speech don't have to be measured against what is used in formal/written English to qualify as serviceable/good language.

It is a most unusual tag for a mode of communication that is not exact...as you have in fact testified to!

I don't understand what you mean here, SB.

But seriously...'off of'? Is it popular in Canada? Because it grates on me as I'm sure it does for my younger brother too.

'popular' isn't the test for any given collocation. But it is in use in all dialects of English, most certainly it is.

UK
Results 1 - 10 of about 40,000 English pages for "get off of".

USA
Results 1 - 10 of about 547,000 English pages for "get off of".

Canada
Results 1 - 10 of about 80,300 English pages for "get off of".

Australia
Results 1 - 10 of about 17,000 English pages for "get off of".

NZ
Results 1 - 10 of about 2,230 English pages for "get off of".

How much something grates on a body isn't really any sound test of language suitability, is it?

It probably wouldn't have bothered Ole Will at all, SB. Have a read here.

Why Shakespeare Didn't Know Grammar

Why Shakespeare Didn't Know Grammar

 

[riverkid]

####%%%^&*()_@@@@@@@


What is with this selective holding posts out until they are "approved" by a moderator? It pulled out my original but let's this nonsense post, above, thru. ???????????????

 

[Shakespeare's brother]

Obviously, what you had to say originally had not been deemed worthy. SB.

 

[Philly]

Some dictionaries categorize 'off of' as an idiom which is especially common in spoken English. Personally, I don't really think people add 'of' for emphasis; I think 'off of' is in fact simply idiomatic.

I've also read that the usage is quite old, going back to at least the 16th century.

Gosh, I'd hate to see the following lyrics changed as a result of some overly zealous idea of grammatical propriety:

You're just too good to be true.
Can't take my eyes off of you.
;-)

 

[riverkid]

Obviously, what you had to say originally had not been deemed worthy. SB.

That would be the prescriptive approach, S'sB, deem something wrong/bad before it's adequately reviewed. ;-)

 

[Shakespeare's brother]

Repeat: 'off of' may be idiomatic in the States but here in the Motherland, it is not! And are you really going to cite song lyrics as examples of good grammar?!

 

[riverkid]

Gosh, I'd hate to see the following lyrics changed as a result of some overly zealous idea of grammatical propriety:

You're just too good to be true.
Can't take my eyes off of you.
;-)

Isn't that what these notions all are, Philly, overly zealous ideas of grammatical propriety.

What about

Hey hey you you get off of my cloud.

And what just comes on the radio but,

"I can't get no satisfaction".

 

[riverkid]

Repeat: 'off of' may be idiomatic in the States but here in the Motherland, it is not! And are you really going to cite song lyrics as examples of good grammar?!

My post, sitting now in moderator limbo, will cast serious doubt on your contention, S'sB.

 

[Shakespeare's brother]

We shall see. I must leave now. I will take the opportunity to re-arm myself with yet more common sense in preparation for tomorrow's postings. So long. SB

 

[BobK]

####%%%^&*()_@@@@@@@


What is with this selective holding posts out until they are "approved" by a moderator? It pulled out my original but let's this nonsense post, above, thru. ???????????????

SET PARANOIA/LEVEL=0 (to use the language of my pre-Windows computer). ;-)
As an anti-spam measure, the forum software requires Moderators to check posts that include URLs. I've given your post the imprimatur.

b

 

[Philly]

Repeat: 'off of' may be idiomatic in the States but here in the Motherland, it is not! And are you really going to cite song lyrics as examples of good grammar?!

There are examples of this usage in the BNC, so it can't be completely unknown in the UK.

A usage dating back to the 1500s (or earlier) would indicate that the "Motherland" in fact exported it and we "Colonials" simply embraced it, cared for it and helped it flourish. ;-)

No, I don't advocate learning grammar from just any old song, but there are plenty of lyrics out there that can be used very well to help ESL students learn a particular usage. The old song "If I Had a Hammer" has been quite useful for my German-speaking students. Most of them have a very hard time getting the grammar of a "Type 2 conditional" right.

 

[BobK]

There are examples of this usage in the BNC, so it can't be completely unknown in the UK.

A usage dating back to the 1500s (or earlier) would indicate that the "Motherland" in fact exported it and we "Colonials" simply embraced it, cared for it and helped it flourish. ;-)

...

:up: . (But before I heard 'Get off of my cloud' in the early '60s I had been spared exposure to this form. Later, I came across it in English folk songs dating from centuries before.)

b

 

[Philly]

Thanks for the input, Bob. :up:

Your use of the word 'spared' suggests to me you don't care for it as much as your forefathers might once have. :lol:

Although 'off of' is in widespread use over here, the usage is nevertheless a somewhat informal one. The 'of' would tend to be omitted or edited out of more formal written English even here. Poor little old 'of'.

 

[riverkid]

:up: . (But before I heard 'Get off of my cloud' in the early '60s I had been spared exposure to this form. Later, I came across it in English folk songs dating from centuries before.)

b

Maybe it just sailed by unnoticed, as naturally as breathing, Bob, because you hadn't been exposed to the prescription yet.